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Gadkari promises 8-hr travel between Delhi and Srinagar by 2023

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Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari has promised to reduce the travel time by car between New Delhi and Srinagar from 24 hours to just 8 hours, while the drive between Jammu and Srinagar in December 2023 would be of an incredible four hours.

Addressing a public meeting at Doda after laying foundation stone for 25 surface communication projects, with aggregate length of 259 km worth Rs 11,721 crore and announcing five new highways in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Gadkari on Wednesday said the construction of the four-lane national highway (NH-44) from Jammu to Srinagar would be completed in the next 24 months.

After completion of the ongoing road projects, the Union Minister added that Jammu and Srinagar would get three road corridors that are currently in different stages of execution. “Srinagar-Jammu national highway (NH-44) will be completed within two years and the travel journey will be reduced to just four hours,” he said. This would mean a total driving time of eight hours from Delhi to Srinagar.

Significantly, in his first meeting with the Jammu and Kashmir politicians in over two years on June 24, 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had emphasised on reducing Kashmir’s distance from Delhi-Dil ki duri aur Dilli ki duri. Gadkari’s ambitious project alongside green-lighting the rail linkage between Srinagar and Delhi in the next two years would be a veritable game changer in the process of Kashmir’s physical integration with the rest of India.

The Union Minister added that the second road corridor between Jammu and Srinagar through Doda-Kishtwar (NH-244) and the third one through Akhnoor-Rajouri-Shopian (Mughal Road) would serve as alternate arteries and connect two hilly wings to the two capital cities.

Referring to the 650-km Delhi-Katra express highway, Gadkari said the work had been distributed in different packages and already started on 16 packages in Punjab and Haryana. “After the completion of the Delhi-Katra express highway, the travel time between major cities, including Delhi-Amritsar, will be four hours, Delhi-Katra six hours and Delhi-Srinagar eight hours. This is my promise and it will be fulfilled,” he said.

The Union Minister said work was also under various stages of completion on the 1350-km long Delhi-Mumbai expressway which would reduce the travel time between India’s political and financial capitals from 24 hours to just 12 hours. It is estimated to be completed within the expenditure of Rs 90,000 crore. He said that Delhi-Chandigarh, Delhi-Dehradun, Delhi-Haridwar and Delhi-Jaipur Road journeys would be covered in just two hours.

As regards the four-lane highway between Jammu and Srinagar, Gadkari added that work was going on speedily on the last two packages. While 85 per cent of work had been completed on the 95-km long Jammu-Udhampur-Nashri section (which includes a 10-km long tunnel), the 60-km section between Nashri and Banihal would be completed by December 2023.

These projects, which are strategically important for the swift movement of defence forces along with the agricultural, industrial and socio-economic progress of the region, will provide all-weather connectivity between Jammu and Kashmir.

The projects will connect all major roads leading to various district headquarters and will help in the generation of employment and self-employment opportunities.

Making a significant announcement, the Minister said the road communication projects worth Rs 1,00,000 crore-equal to the total expenditure on 1350-km long 8-lane Delhi-Mumbai Expressway-would be executed in Jammu and Kashmir in the next two years. Tunnels to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore were already under execution in the UT.

Gadkari’s yet another remarkable announcement came about a road, including a tunnel under the Sadhna Top, between Kupwara and Tangdhar (LoC) and a road, including a tunnel from Bafliaz (Rajouri) to Peer Ki Gali near Shopian, Kashmir. Once completed, these two arteries would provide 24x7x365 connectivity through the two hilly terrains.

“Four things water, power, transport and communication are imperative for the success of tourism and industrialisation, which will help in elevating poverty, creating jobs and boosting economy,” the Minister said, adding that the Centre was making all-out efforts to bring development and prosperity to Jammu and Kashmir.

Referring to the development of roads in J&K, he said when the BJP came to power in 2014, the total length of roads in Jammu and Kashmir was 1,695 km, which was expanded to 2,664 km by 2021. J&K, he said, was the only part in the country where tunnels worth over Rs 50,000 crore were currently being constructed. These include Asia’s longest road tunnel near Zojila on Srinagar-Kargil-Leh highway.

“I assure you that the infrastructure will be at par with the western European standards during the Modi government,” Gadkari said about the roads under execution and in the pipeline.

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LS Speaker reprimands Sonia Gandhi over Waqf bill ‘bulldozed’ remarks

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New Delhi, April 4: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday reprimanded former Congress president Sonia Gandhi over her remarks that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was bulldozed through the Parliament.

Taking strong objection to her claims of Waqf Bill passed ‘forcefully’ in the House, Om Birla termed the comments as ‘unfortunate’ and said that the allegations by senior Congress member was a violation of the democratic norms of the Parliament.

The Speaker noted that the bill was discussed for 13 hours and 53 minutes, with every party participating in the debate and followed by three rounds of voting but despite that Congress member was making such allegations.

“Three rounds of voting were conducted, and the Bill was passed according to the rules of the House. It is unfortunate that, despite following all the parliamentary procedures, such allegations are being made. This is not in line with the democratic norms of Parliament,” Speaker said.

Om Birla’s objection to Sonia’s claims of Waqf bill ‘bulldozed through’ the Parliament came after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju raised the matter in Lok Sabha today.

Rijiju, alluding to Congress RS MP Sonia Gandhi, said that extensive discussions took place in both the Houses over the Waqf bill, still the Opposition was making ‘baseless and absurd’ claims that the bill was passed with force.

He also demanded that the Speaker issues an “appropriate order” in response to these remarks.

Rijiju also highlighted that the Waqf reform debate broke the previous record of longest discussion in the Rajya Sabha.

“The previous record for a long discussion in the Rajya Sabha was during the ESMA (Essential Services Maintenance Act) discussion in 1981, which lasted for 16 hours and 51 minutes. Yesterday, this record was broken with a 17-hour and 2-minute discussion, making it the longest debate so far,” he informed the House.

A day ago, after Lok Sabha passed the Waqf Bill after marathon debate, Sonia Gandhi made her displeasure over the amendments known to party leaders, while addressing the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) meet yesterday. She stated that the bill was bulldozed through the House and termed it a brazen assault on the Constitution.

“Yesterday, the Wakf Amendment Bill, 2024 was passed in the Lok Sabha and today it is scheduled to come up in the Rajya Sabha. The bill was in effect bulldozed through. Our party’s position is clear. The Bill is a brazen assault on the Constitution itself,” she said.

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After passage from Parliament, Waqf Bill awaits President’s nod: Details here

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New Delhi, April 4: The Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed by Rajya Sabha in the wee hours of Friday after a marathon debate, involving heated exchanges between the treasury and opposition benches. The Upper House debated the bill for nearly 14 hours and then cleared it with 128 votes in favour and 95 against.

The legislation was earlier cleared by the Lok Sabha after nearly 12 hours debate, with 288 votes in favour and 232 against.

With this, both the Houses have cleared the decks for amendments in the Waqf Bill of 1995 and repealing the Mussalman Wakf Act of 1923.

The next course of action is the Presidential assent for the bill, following which it will turn into a law.

The Bill will be sent to President Droupadi Murmu soon and her approval will pave the way for amending the 1995 laws, governing Waqf properties.

According to a leading portal, the government is expecting a smaller window for the approval, unlike the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

The NDA government, which is projecting the Waqf Amendment Bill as one of key milestone decision in first year of Modi 3.0 is expected to notify it for implementation, soon after getting President’s nod.

Interestingly, one of the major highlights of Rajya Sabha voting last night, was Biju Janata Dal (BJD)’s stand on the contentious bill.

As per the numbers of NDA and INDIA bloc, the bill was expected to sail through in Rajya Sabha but with a lower margin as compared to Lok Sabha. NDA was expected to get support of 123 MPs but ended up securing 128 votes in favour while INDIA bloc ended at 95 (as against expected figure of 98).

Hours before the voting, Naveen Patknaik-led BJD opened the gates for “conscience vote’, telling its 7 MPs that they would not be bound by a whip and could vote for whichever side they wanted.

Some BJD MPs cross-voted in favour of NDA, there bettering its tally than earlier expected. A total of 119 votes was needed for the bill to get through but BJP’s efficient floor management helped it secure 128 votes.

Meanwhile, Congress has stated that it will challenge the constitutionality of the Waqf legislation in the Supreme Court.

“The INC will very soon be challenging in the Supreme Court the constitutionality of the Wakf (Amendment) Bill, 2024,” he wrote in a post on X.

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Congress MP Imran Masood calls for banning liquor during Navratri

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Saharanpur, March 29: Congress lawmaker Imran Masood said on Saturday that not just meat shops, liquor establishments should be shut during the nine-day festival of Navratri and called for embracing and promoting the spirit of brotherhood and communal harmony.

“Everybody is demanding a ban on meat shops during Navratri. Why is no one asking for a ban on liquor shops? Why is there no outpouring on the free flow of liquor during Navratri? Will this not spoil the purity and sanctity of the festival?” Saharanpur MP said in a special interaction with media.

The Congress Parliamentarian said that peaceful celebration supersedes everything, and it is incumbent upon all communities to maintain decorum during festivities and also make certain sacrifices, be it Eid or Navratri.

Notably, Eid-ul-Fitr and Navratri are coinciding on the same day this year. Both festivals are set to fall on Monday, with little possibility of change in the Eid schedule on account of moon sighting.

Days ago, the Congress MP also extended support to the demands of a meat ban during Navratri celebrations. In an apparent message to the Muslim community, he said that nothing would change if one did not eat meat for ten days.

“What matters above everything is the peaceful co-existence of communities. At no point in time, the differences over food preferences lead to communal strife,” Masood told newspersons.

Congress MP, when asked questions on the party’s strategy for the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, said that the Opposition is fully prepared to take on the Centre on “partisan legislation”.

“We opposed the amendments in the JPC meeting, tooth and nail. We will strongly voice our dissent in Parliament too,” he said.

Notably, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the Waqf Bill will not be delayed any further and will be reintroduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.

Only four working days of the Budget Session are left, as it concludes on April 4.

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